/ 4715 

»py 1 



£ibvan< of (topw. 

MJ/ £kjt 

c</i, j iti,i><pA-'£' *=ftfy-. 



UNITED STATES OF AMEEICA. 



X 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 



^ " /c^Jtf THE p&ua- 

GOLDEN RULE; 

£><z-^~*^ . A DIALOG VE 

BETWEEN 

LITTLE GRACE AND HER MOTHER. 

u All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, 
do ye even so to thein." — Matt. viz. 12. 




WRITTEN FOR THE MASSACHUSETTS SABBATH SCHOOL 
SOCIETY, AND REVISED BY THE COMMITTEE 
OF PUBLICATION. 



BOSTON: 

MASSACHUSETTS SABBATH SCHOOL SOCIETY. 
Depository, No. 25, Cornhill. 



1835. 



UV4 7| 5 



Enten^Jaccprdinglo the^A^t of JJgngress, in theV^r^ 

BY CHRISTOPHER* C. DEAJNT, 
In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of Massachusetts. 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 
The Golden Rule in the Family. 

CHAPTER II. 
The Golden Rule in the Sabbath School. 

CHAPTER III. 

The Golden Rule Every Where. 



To my dear little Readers. 

I have written a little book for you about our 
Saviour's Golden Rule, — and I write this little 
Preface to tell you that I do not know that any 
such persons as Grace Jones and her mother 
ever lived ; but I have imagined that a little girl 
and her mother were talking, and I have given 
them names, and put words into their mouths, be- 
cause I thought I could make you understand me 
in this way better than I could in any other way. 
I tell you this, because I do not wish to deceive 
you by telling you any thing that is not true ; 
for I do no believe in telling little lies. I should 
be very glad, if you would always do to others 
as you would like to have them do to you. Then 
think, while reading this, how you would like to 
have little children do, if you had taken pains to 
write a little book and get it printed for them. 
Would you not like to have them read it very 
carefully, and mind every thing in it ? That is 
what I hope you will do, when you read this little 
book, that I have written for you. 

The Author* 

1* 



THE GOLBEJT RULE- 



CHAPTER I. 

The Golden Rule in the Family. 

"My dear Mother," said Grace Jones, 
" do come and walk in the garden, 
among the sweet flowers, and talk with 
your little daughter." 

" Yes, my dear Grace," said Mrs. 
Jones, " I love to walk among the pret- 
ty flowers, every thing looks so bright, 
cheerful, and gay." 

" Yes, mother, the dear little things 
are just opening their leaves to the sun, 
and they are all wet with dew. It 
seems as if I could see them smile." 



10 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

" And do you think, my love, that 
God meant any body should be fretful 
and cross, when all nature is smiling 
and gay ?" 

" No, mother ; I wonder w 7 hat any 
body wants to be cross for. It only 
makes others feel bad, without making 
them feel any better. But I think 
they don't mind the golden rule." 

" Who told you any thing about the 
golden rule, my love ?" 

" Why, mother, we have agreed to 
have it for our rule in the Sabbath 
School ; and we all held up our hands 
to it last Sabbath." 

" And do you think you understand 
it?" 

" It is very plain, mother. I can't 
help understanding it. For, when I am 
going to do any thing, I have only to 
think, now suppose I was James, or 



THE GOLDEN RULE. H 

Joseph, or Susan, how would I like to 
have them do to me." 

" That is right, my dear ; and if you 
always make this your rule, you never 
will do any wrong to others. You will 
find it a good rule at home as well as 
at school." 

" I have been thinking how it would 
make me behave towards my dear father 
and mother. If I was father, I would 
like to have my little daughter meet me 
at the door, when I come in, with a 
happy face, take my hat, and draw up 
the arm chair for me to sit down ; and 
then I should like to have her always 
watching for a chance to show her 
kindness and affection for me ; and to 
get every thing I want, before 1 ask for 
it." 

" Yes, my love ; if you behave so, 
and carry out the same kind and amiable 



12 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

feelings towards your dear father, in all 
you do, it will make him very happy ; 
and he will bless God for giving him 
such a good little girl." 

" Well, I have been thinking, too, 
how this good rule will make me behave 
towards my dear mother. If I was 
mother, I should like to have my little 
daughter do just right, without being 
told. I should like to have her always 
watching, to see if she could not tell 
beforehand what I wanted her to do, 
and then do it of her own accord ; and 
try every way to be kind to me, and 
make me happy." 

" You cannot tell how happy I am, 
my love, to learn that you feel so to- 
wards your father and mother. If you 
follow this rule, you will never suffer 
either of us to tell you more than once 
to do the same thing. You will not 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 13 

wait a moment to do as you are bid. 
You will not think that you know better 
than your father and mother, and stop 
and answer back, and dispute with them 
about what they tell you to do. You 
will not say, ' Let John or Susan do 
it nor look sour and ill-natured, and 
go away pouting. But as soon as you 
know what they wish you to do, you 
will be delighted to have a chance to 
serve them, and with a sweet smile you 
will go right away to do it. If you 
were a father or a mother, would you 
not like to have your children behave 
so?" 

" O yes ; it would make me feel so 
happy." 

" And, when the family are sitting 
together, if you follow the golden rule, 
you will never be fond of talking, but 
will rather listen to what father and 
2 



14 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

mother have to say ; and you will nev- 
er interrupt them, by saying any thing, 
or making a noise while they are speak- 
ing. You will not be noisy while with 
them. But, how will this rule lead you 
to behave, when father and mother do 
not see you ?" 

" Why, if I were father and mother 
I would not like to have my children do 
any thing when alone that they would 
not like to have me know." 

"Very well ; and you will never do 
any thing that we have forbidden. You 
will not take any thing that belongs to 
us, unless you know that we are willing 
you should have it. But, especially, 
you will not meddle with any choice 
things that we have put away. Think 
of it. Put yourself in our place ; and 
then act as you would like to have us 
act, if we were your children. Many 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 15 

children are so full of mischief, that 
nothing can be left within their reach, 
without being injured ; and some mo- 
thers have to keep their closets locked, 
to prevent their children from eating 
their cakes, sweetmeats, and choice 
things. But children who will do so, 
are little thieves ; and they will go to 
ruin when they grow up with such 
habits." 

" O, mother, I did not know that it 
was stealing to take things that belong 
to father and mother. I will never do 
it again." 

" Well, my dear ; tell me how you 
like to have father and mother treat 
you." 

" O, I like to have them love me and 
be kind to me, and give me what I need. 
When I do wrong, I don't like to have 
them scold me. I know I deserve it ; 



16 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

but I don't think it does me any good. 
It makes me feel cross, and sometimes 
I get angry. But I like to have them 
tell me kindly how bad I have been, and 
how it grieves them when I do wrong. 
That makes me feel sorry, and I cry ; be- 
cause I have displeased my dear parents, 
who are so kind to me ; and I love 
them better than ever. , I like to have 
them punish me when I am a bad girl, 
and wo'n't submit to them ; for I feel 
better after it. I never loved father so 
much as I did when he punished me 
the last time. But once I felt fretful 
and ill-natured. I knew it was wrong, 
and tried with all my might not to act 
as I felt, so as to make any body else 
feel bad. I tried to look pleasant, 
though I did not feel so. But I sup- 
pose father saw that I did not feel right, 
and he looked angrily at me, and spoke 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 17 

harshly. This stirred up my bad feel- 
ings, so that I could not govern them ; 
and so I was very angry, and behaved 
bad. I didn't blame father for punish- 
ing me then ; but I thought if he had 
looked pleasant, and spoken kindly to 
me, he would have helped me control 
my feelings, and saved me from be- 
having so badly, and from being pun- 
ished. I like to have father and moth- 
er do just as they say. When I was 
at aunt Mills', she told little cousins 
that they must not pick any of the 
sweet pinks, without asking her leave ; 
and that she would punish them if they 
did. In a little while, as we were walk- 
ing in the garden, James picked one, 
and aunt Mills saw it, but said nothing 
to him. The next "day I was walking 
along with cousin Mary, and she said 
she w r ould make a nosegay of the pinks, 
2* 



13 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

and give it to her dear mother. I told 
her she must not pick them, because 
aunt had forbidden it. But she said 
James had picked some, and her moth- 
er knew it, but did not punish him, and 
she thought she should not get pun- 
ished. So she made a fine nosegay and 
brought it to her mother, thinking she 
would be wonderfully pleased. But 
aunt Mills was very angry at Mary, and 
punished her severely. I felt very sor- 
ry for Mary ; for I knew she did it to 
please her mother." 

" But, how could she expect to 
please her mother by disobeying her ? 
There is no way that children can so 
well please their parents, as to mind 
every thing they say. You remember 
how king Saul did, when the Lord sent 
him to destroy the Amalekites, and told 
him not to save any thing alive. But 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 19 

he thought it was a pity to kill all the 
fine cattle, and so he saved the best of 
them to sacrifice to the Lord. But, 
the Lord was displeased with him, and 
told him that obedience was better than 
sacrifice. He would rather have peo- 
ple obey him ; and if they try to please 
him with any thing short of obedience, 
they will be disappointed. And so it 
is with children, in regard to their pa- 
rents." 

"But, Mary saw that her mother 
was not angry when James picked the 
pinks, and she thought she had altered 
her mind, or that she did not care much 
about it. I am sure if she had pun- 
ished James, Mary would not have 
touched the pinks. I don't think she 
did as she would like to have others do 
to her. 

" Another time, a gentleman gave 



20 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

Mary a pretty little book, and John a 
whip, and James a top. They were 
all wonderfully pleased. Mary cov- 
ered her book with nice clean paper, 
and put it in her book case ; for she 
said she would keep it neat and clean 
as long as she lived. John ran about 
cracking his whip, and James was busy 
whirling his top. But after a while, 
James got tired of his top, and began 
to teaze John for the whip. John said 
the whip was his, for the gentleman 
had given it to him, and he was afraid 
James would spoil it. But James said 
he would have it ; and he bawled out 
and ran to his mother. Aunt Mills 
made John give his whip to James, be- 
cause he was the younger ; but it was 
not five minutes before the little fellow 
had it in the fire, and burnt off the 
snapper. John felt very bad at the loss 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 21 

of his whip, and cried as if he would 
break his heart. But, pretty soon, he 
wiped away his tears, and said, " Mother, 
you said James must have my whip, and 
he has spoiled it ; and now I must have 
Mary's book." So, to pacify him, she 
told Mary to give him the book. Mary 
brought the book, without saying a 
word ; but I saw the tear starting from 
her eye, as she gave it to her brother. 
James had just been rubbing his eyes 
with his dirty hands, and as he turned 
over the leaves to look at the pictures, 
I saw the black prints of his fingers on 
them. In a few minutes, James came 
along and snatched the book, and tore 
out one of the finest pictures. Mary 
said nothing ; but went away to her 
room, and cried for half an hour. Now, 
I thought Aunt Mills did not do as she 
would like to have others do to her. 



22 the golden rule. 

And I wondered how she would like to 
have 'Squire Phillips come and take 
some of her finest things and give them 
to Mrs. Martin, just because she wanted 
them." 

" Aunt Mills did very wrong. She 
set up her authority in the place of 
justice. Children ought always to sub- 
mit to their parents ; but when the pa- 
rents exercise their authority without 
any regard to the rights of the chil- 
dren, they will often be guilty of in- 
justice and cruelty. The children will 
see it, and learn to be unjust and cruel 
towards their brothers and sisters. 
But, did James and John do as they 
would like to be done by ?" 

" No, mother, they did not. I know 
James would not have been pleased, if 
John had taken away his top ; and 
John was not pleased when James got 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 23 

his whip ; and he would not have 
asked for Mary's book, if he had fol- 
lowed the golden rule." 

" You are right, my child. If broth- 
ers and sisters would always treat each 
other as they would like to be treated, 
they would never quarrel. They would 
be as happy as a flock of little lambs. 
Tell me, my dear, how you would like 
to have your brothers and sisters treat 
you." 

" I would like to have them always 
kind and affectionate towards me ; try- 
ing every way they can to make me 
happy. I don't like to have them tease 
me ; and I never saw a little boy or 
girl that liked to be teased ; so I don't 
believe it is right for brothers and sis- 
ters to tease one another. It is not 
doing as they would have others do to 
them. When my brothers and sisters 



24 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

have any good things given to them, I 
like to have them divide with me." 

" But, do you think you have any 
right to what is given to them ?" 

" No, mother, I don't. But I like to 
have them give me a part of what they 
have, because it shows that they love 
me, and that makes me love them 
more, and feel happy. But I don't 
like to have them meddle with my 
things, without leave. For, I have 
every thing fixed to my mind ; and 
when any body else goes to them, I al- 
ways find my things out of place ; 
w T hich gives me a great deal of trouble." 

" If brothers and sisters mind the 
golden rule, my dear, they will not say, 
when any thing is to be done, 6 Let 
Thomas go,' or 6 Why can't John do 
it,' or 4 William, you go.' But if 
there is any strife, it will be to see 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 25 

which is most ready to do what is to 
be done. The brother will kindly say 
to the sister, 6 O sister, don't you go ; 
let me do this ; 5 and the sister will 
say, ' O no, brother, let me do it ; ? 
and so it will be a strife of kindness." 

" O, mother, that is the way it is at 
uncle Joseph's. And they are so hap- 
py there. The children are so kind 
and loving to one another. And, when 
aunt Martha wants any thing done, 
they all jump and say, 6 1 will,' c I 
will, mother.' One day, a gentleman 
gave Joseph a fine large orange ; but 
he laid it up and said, 4 1 must wait till 
brothers and sisters come home from 
school, for I can't sit down and eat it 
alone.' I never heard them teazing 
one another ; but they are always try- 
ing to make each other happy. They 
have the golden rule in large gold let- 
3 



26 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

ters over the fire-place, in the nursery. 
But, at aunt Mills', they are all the 
time tormenting one another ; and 
when she tells James to do any thing, 
he says to his brother, 6 John, you do 
it and John turns round and says, 
4 No, I wo'n't ; do it yourself.' Then 
aunt will tell George to do it. 4 No,' 
says he, 6 Susan may.' And while 
they are quarrelling about it, their poor 
mother goes and does it herself. One 
day, a lady gave George a nice large 
apple, and he crept away slily into the 
garret, to eat it by himself ; for he was 
afraid his brothers and sisters would 
rob him." 

" Well, my dear, suppose you were 
a servant-girl, how would you like to 
be treated ?" 

" I would like to have all the family 
kind to me ; and not tell me to do any 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 27 

more hard or unpleasant work than is 
necessary. I would like to have time 
to read the Bible and pray, and to read 
some other good books. I would like 
to be allowed to go to Sabbath School 
and to church. 1 would not like to 
have the children domineer over me. 
When they want me .to do any thing, I 
shoLild like to have them speak kindly, 
and say, ' Grace, will you do this ?' 
and not tell me in a haughty way, 
* Here, Grace, do this.' I would like 
to have all the family feel for me, and 
try to make my situation as agreeable 
as possible." 

" If any body in the world, ought to 
be treated with kindness, my dear, it is 
servants ; for they have very difficult 
and disagreeable duties to perform ; 
and we ought to feel for them. They 
have so many persons to please, that 



28 THF GOLDEN RULE. 

it is very difficult for them to give satis- 
faction. To domineer over them, and 
find unnecessary fault, is ungrateful, 
and shows a, very mean spirit," 



CHAPTER II. 



The Golden Rule in the Sabbath School* 

The next morning, as Grace sat by 
her mother, with her Bible in her hand, 
studying her Sabbath School lesson, she 
said, " Mother, we did not say any thing 
yesterday about the golden rule in the 
Sabbath School. As we have agreed to 
make it our rule there, I would like to 
talk about it, and see what I have pro- 
mised to do." 

" I am glad, my love," said Mrs. 
Jones, " that you wish to understand 
your promise ; for it is very foolish and 
wicked to promise what you do not 
mean to do. And I am glad you love 
3* 



30 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

to talk about the golden rule ; for it is 
the best rale that was ever made. It 
is better than all the laws in the world. 
If the superintendent, teachers, and 
scholars, all govern themselves by this 
rule, you will have a happy Sabbath 
School. I like to have a superintend- 
ent who feels a deep interest in the 
prosperity of the School, and considers 
himself responsible for its character. 
I like to have him kind and affectionate 
towards the teachers and scholars. I 
like to have him talk with the teachers, 
ask their advice, before doing any thing 
of importance, and know how they feel, 
and how their scholars are learning, and 
whether they feel concerned about their 
souls. I like to have him talk with the 
scholars, and become acquainted with 
them, and gain their affections, so that 
they will all love him ; and when he 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 



31 



meets them in the streets, to speak 
kindly to them. I like to have him al- 
ways visit the teachers, after they have 
been absent from their classes ; and 
when any of the scholars are absent, 
to see that their teachers visit them. 5 ' 

" But, mother, I think you forgot one 
thing. I would like to have the super- 
intendent always come a little before 
the time for the school to begin. Some- 
times, we have to wait a long time for 
our superintendent, till we all get tired ; 
and when he comes, he is almost out of 
•breath, so that he can hardly read the 
hymn. But, if you were the superin- 
tendent, how would you like to have 
the teachers do ?" 

" I would like to have them all seat- 
ed in their places, a few minutes be- 
fore the time for opening the school, 
with their books, and every thing ready, 



32 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

so that they need not disturb the school, 
after it is open. And, when I look 
round upon them, I would like to have 
them appear so serious and solemn, that 
I can tell from their countenances that 
they have just been praying, O, with 
what comfort and satisfaction a super- 
intendent can look upon such teachers. 
He feels confident that they will be 
faithful to their scholars. They have 
been praying for them, and weeping 
over them, and now they come to tell 
them of their sins, and persuade them 
to come to Jesus." 

" Mother, I have seen some of the 
teachers in our school leave their class- 
es, and go to talk with other teachers, 
while their scholars were laughing and 
playing, and disturbing the school. I 
think if they were the superintendent, 
they would not like to have the teach- 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 33 

ers behave so. And I have seen other 
teachers' places empty, till some time 
after the school was opened, and their 
scholars making a noise ; and when 
they came in, it was with such an air 
that they disturbed the whole schooL 
That was not treating the superintend- 
ent as they would like to be treated." 

" And I have seen the superintend- 
ent come in, and three or four of the 
teachers would be away, without hav- 
ing let him know it, or sent any others 
to take their places. This makes him 
feel very disagreeably ; for he knows 
not what to do. These classes have to 
sit idle, because they have no teachers ; 
and if there are any bad boys or girls in 
them, they will be laughing, playing, 
and making a noise. Such teachers 
would not like to be treated so. If the 
superintendent and teachers mind the 



&4 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

golden rule, they will bear with one 
another's faults. When the superin- 
tendent sees something wrong in any 
of the teachers, he will not go round to 
one and another and talk about it ; but 
he will go to the teacher, who has done 
wrong, and, in a kind and gentle man- 
ner, tell him his fault. And the teach- 
ers will not be talking with one another 
about the superintendent, and finding 
fault with his management. If they 
see him do any thing which they do not 
like, they will think first whether, if 
they were in his place, they could do 
any better, and how they would like to 
be treated. But, if they still think he 
is in fault, they will go to him and kind- 
ly tell him so. But, my dear, how do 
you like to have your teacher treat 
you ?" 

" When Miss Rose was our teacher 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 35 

she did not come more than half the 
time. She would always scold if we 
had not learned the lesson ; but cousin 
Mary said our teacher did not look at 
it herself, for she always had to ask us 
where it was ; and she thought she 
could get along about as well as Miss 
Rose, without studying the lesson. 
But, I never thought Miss Rose cared 
much about the Sabbath School. She 
didn't seem to love the lesson ; and 
she never showed any feeling. She 
would hurry over the lesson as quick 
as she could, passing over the hard 
questions. We could not help thinking 
that she couldn't answer these herself ; 
and that was the reason she did not 
put them to us. She would finish the 
lesson before Miss Faithful had got 
half through ; and then she would sit 
and read till school was out ; and if any 



36 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

of us appeared uneasy, she would turn 
her eyes from her book, and in a scold- 
ing tone, tell us to be still. She never 
talked to us one by one, to know how 
we felt ; and all we could tell about 
her feelings was, that she never seemed 
tof eel good natured. When any of us 
did not behave so as to please her, she 
would always be telling how much she 
was denying herself to come there to 
teach us. Many a time, Sabbath morn- 
ing, I have thought, ' It 9 s no use for 
me to go to school to-day. My teach- 
er won't be there. 5 And I only went 
to please father and mother. I never 
found more than half the girls there ; 
and when I saw them the next day, 
and asked them why they were not 
at school, they would say, ' We were 
there last Sabbath ; but our teacher 
was not there, and it's no use to go and 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 37 

sit there, without any one to teach us.' 
She never came to visit us ; and if we 
met her in the street she would not 
seem to see us. I don't think she would 
like to be treated so, if she was a scho- 
lar. Miss Faithful is our teacher now. 
I think she remembers the golden rule. 
I always find her in her place, when I 
get there. She has never been away 
but once ; and then she was sick. But, 
she sent word to the superintendent, 
and got Miss Simpson to take her place, 
who brought us this letter : 

" My Dear Girls — I am very sorry 
that I cannot meet you this morning. 
I am sick. The Lord has seen fit to 
lay me up to-day. Miss Simpson will 
teach you. I hope you will be good 
girls, and pay attention to every thing 
she says. You don't know, my dear 
girls, how much I long to have you 
4 



38 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

love Jesus ; and how earnestly I pray 
that God would send his Holy Spirit to 
make you see how bad you have been 
to disobey him, to make you sorry for it, 
and persuade you to come to Jesus for 
pardon, and be willing to obey God. 
Your affectionate Teacher, 

Ann Faithful. 55 

We were all very sorry to hear that 
our teacher was sick, for we loved her 
very much. We were quite affected 
with her letter, and we all cried while 
Miss Simpson was reading it. The 
next day, you know, we all visited her. 
She always visits lis once a week ; and 
if any of us are not at school, she is 
sure to call on us Monday ; for she says 
she is afraid we are sick. And, when 
she visits us, she never will go away 
without talking to us about our souls, 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 39 

and praying with us. When she meets 
us in the streets, she looks pleasant, 
takes us by the hand, and asks us how 
we do, and how we feel about religion. 
We all love her very much, for we 
know that she loves us. She never 
scolds ; but talks to us as if we were 
little women. If we do or say any 
thing wrong, she tells us of it in a ten- 
der and gentle way, so that we always 
feel sorry. But it is not often that any 
such thing happens ; for we love her so 
much that none of us would displease 
her, if we could help it. And she al- 
ways looks so serious and tender that 
we all know she has just been praying ; 
and that makes us feel as if God was 
near. We could not be light and tri- 
fling, if we should try. The first time 
she came to teach us, she told us where 
the next lesson would be, and charged 



40 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

us to learn it well. But, the next Sab- 
bath, not one of us could repeat a single 
verse, or answer the questions without 
the Bible before us, for we had not 
looked at the lesson. She looked so 
disappointed, and appeared so much 
grieved, that we all thought we w 7 ould 
never hurt her feelings so again. So, 
the next time, w^e had our lesson per- 
fectly. And, now for the first time, 
we found the Sabbath School interest- 
ing. She had studied the lesson, and 
prepared herself so well, that she told 
us a great many things that we had nev- 
er heard or thought of before ; and she 
talked to us with so much feeling about 
our souls, and how we had been treat- 
ing God, and about the love of God to 
us, and about Jesus, that we all cried. 
Since that time, we have always had 
our lessons well studied ; and everv 



THE GOLDEN RULE, 41 

time we meet, she has something new 
to tell us. And now, mother, I hope 
we all love Jesus. Don't you think 
Miss Faithful follows the golden rule ?" 

" Yes, my dear ; and I wish all Sab- 
bath School teachers were like Miss 
Faithful. But, suppose you were a 
teacher, how would you like to have 
your scholars behave ? M 

" O, mother ; I had rather you would 
answer that, as you have been a teach- 
er, and can tell better how teachers feel 
than I can." 

" Well, when I was a teacher, I 
wished to see my scholars all seated 
before the time to open the school ; and 
then they would not disturb the rest, 
by coming in while we were at the les- 
son. I have often been talking to my 
class, so that their eyes were fixed up- 
on me, and they were eagerly catching 
4* 



42 THE GOLDEN RULE* 

every word I said. I could see that 
they began to feel. The tears started 
from their eyes. But, just at this mo- 
ment, another scholar would come in, 
and bustle about to get her seat and 
find the lesson. This would divert 
the attention of the class ; and by the 
time every thing was settled again, they 
would lose their feeling, and I would 
forget what I was saying. This is not 
treating the teacher as the scholars 
would like to be treated. Then, I like 
to have every scholar come with her 
lesson well studied and committed to 
memory. 

If children knew how much they 
grieve their teachers by coming to school 
without having learned the lesson, I 
think they would never do it. When 
scholars consent to place themselves 
under a teacher, it is with the under- 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 43 

standing that they are to profit by his 
instructions ; for that is all the pay he 
gets- And if he fails to do them good, 
his labor will be lost. 

Children ought to know that teach- 
ers deny themselves a great many priv- 
ileges for the sake of teaching them. 

They labor harder on the Sabbath 
than any other day of the week. 
They deny themselves the pleasure ot 
spending two or three hours of God's 
holy day in reading, praying, and think- 
ing about God and heaven. And, how 
grieved and discouraged they must feel, 
if their scholars show, by neglecting the 
lesson, that they don't care any thing 
for their instructions. Scholars who 
do not get their lessons, don't do to 
their teachers as they would like to 
have others do to them. While I am 
hearing the lesson and asking questions, 



44 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

I like to have the scholars keep quiet, 
and not talk or whisper to one another. 
Especially, when I am talking to them, 
I like to have them pay attention and 
listen, and not be talking to one an- 
other, or asking leave to go out, or any 
other foolish questions. This inter- 
rupts me, and shows a very great want 
of good breeding. I like to have them 
answer the questions I ask, and tell me 
all about their feelings. When I have 
felt deeply concerned for my scholars, 
and so anxious to have them converted 
that I would pray for them night and 
day, with tears, I have been much 
grieved that I could not persuade them 
to tell me any thing about their feel- 
ings. They did not mind the golden 
rule. When scholars get displeased, it 
is very ungrateful and foolish for them 
to say, ' I won't come to school any 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 45 

more.' It is ungrateful, because it 
shows that they have no sense of their 
obligations to their teacher. It is not 
for his own good, that he wishes them 
to come to the school. It is for their 
good. But scholars often treat their 
teachers as if they thought they were 
doing him a great favor by coming to 
the school. It is foolish, also, for, if 
they stay away from school because 
they are offended with their teacher, 
they hurt nobody but themselves. 
But they injure the feelings of their 
teacher, by treating him ill, while he is 
trying to do them good. This is not 
following the golden rule. But, there 
is no w 7 ay that scholars so often break 
this rule, as in the manner of receiving 
the book from the Library. It is al- 
most impossible for the teacher to please 
them. After he has chosen the best 



46 THE GOLDEN RULE, 

books he can find, one says, 4 I don't 
want this ;' another says, 6 Pve had 
this before ;' and so they are dissatis- 
fied. And sometimes two want the 
same book, and instead of generously 
offering to surrender their right to it, 
they begin to quarrel about it, and if 
the teacher gives it to either, he will 
offend the other, and if he gives it to 
neither, they will both be displeased. 
One perhaps throws down his book and 
says, 6 I'll not take this book. I won't 
come any more.' And they all go 
away pouting. Now, suppose a gentle- 
man should come to you with his hands 
full of fine jewels, and give you such 
a one as he should think best for you 
to have ; but you tell him you don't 
like that — you want to choose for your- 
self : Would that be treating him 
well ?" 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 47 

" No, mother ; if I was going to 
make a little girl a present, and she 
should begin to complain that it did not 
suit her, I should not like it at all. I 
would not give it to her." 

Well ; the Library belongs to the 
School. It is a privilege to the chil- 
dren ; and they ought to be satisfied 
with such books as their teachers or the 
librarian give them. I am afraid many 
boys and gills take the books just to 
look at the pictures, and never read 
them through. So, if they have ever 
seen a book before, they will say they 
have had it, and so make their teachers 
more trouble. All this is breaking the 
golden rule. It is not doing to others 
as they would like to have others do 
to them." 



CHAPTER III. 
The Golden Rule Every Where. 

66 Mother, we have been talking 
about the golden rule in the family and 
in the Sabbath School. I would like 
to hear more about it," 

" Well, I will tell you how the golden 
rule will make people treat one another, 
every where. All the world is natu- 
rally divided into three classes, Superi- 
ors, Inferiors, and Equals. Those who 
are above us, in age, natural abilities, 
learning, piety, or situation in life, are 
called our superiors ; and those be- 
low us, inferiors. The rest are our 
equals." 

5 



50 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

" Well, mother, tell me, if you please, 
how I must behave towards my supe- 
riors." 

" You ought always to treat them 
with respect, so as to show them that 
you feel sensible of their superiority. 
Suppose you were in company with a 
number of young ladies. It would be 
very improper for you, who are but a 
little girl, to put yourself forward, and 
have something to say in all the conver- 
sation that passes ; and it would be 
much more so, if you were in company 
with aged persons. In both cases, it 
would be your place to keep quiet, and 
modestly listen to the conversation of 
your superiors. For you to talk all 
the time, would show that you thought 
yourself very wise, and capable of 
teaching others older than yourself. 



THE GOLDEN RULE 51 

Would that be doing as you would be 
done by ?" 

" No, if I was a woman I wouldn't 
like to be treated so by a little girl. 
One day, when I was at Aunt Mills', 
there were some gentlemen and ladies 
there ; but Susan kept chattering all 
the time. She sat down in the rocking 
chair ; and when the old ladies came 
in, she kept her seat, and let them help 
themselves. And, all the time I was 
there, she would always take the best 
seat, and not get up for any body. Was 
that minding the golden rule 

" No ; the Bible says, ' Thou shalt 
rise up before the hoary head.' When 
older people come into the room, you 
should always rise and help them to a 
seat ; and show them all the attention 
you can. When they speak, you should 
be silent, unless they say something to 



52 THF GOLDEN RULE. 

which an answer is expected. And, if 
you begin a conversation with them, 
introduce it by making some inquiry, as 
if you would ask for information ; and 
never talk as if you thought you knew 
as much as they. If you see that they 
want any thing, help them to it, without 
waiting to be told.' 5 

"My little cousins, at aunt Mills', 
never say Mister, when they speak of 
any man ; but they say, ' We'll go 
over to Wrightfs, or to Johnson^, or to 
old ScottfsS One day, a poor old man, 
dressed very shabbily, came hobbling 
along on crutches, and the boys ran 
after him, crying out, 6 old dadda ! old 
dadda P I think that was not minding 
the golden rule." 

"No, my dear girl. If they live to 
be old men, they will not like to be 
treated so. God is displeased, when 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 53 

young persons treat aged people with 
disrespect. He has shown his disappro- 
bation of it in an awful manner. The 
prophet Elisha was a holy man, and 
God loved him ; but he was so old that 
he had a bald head ; and one day, as 
he was passing along the street, a com- 
pany of rude children ran after him, 
crying out 6 Go up, thou bald head ! go 
up, thou bald headP But in a little 
while, God sent two old bears from the 
woods, and they killed forty-two of 
them." 

"Aunt Mills 5 boys laughed at the 
poor old man, and called him c Old 
CrutchesS I think that was not doing 
as they would be done by. 5 ' 

" No ; nothing shows a meaner spirit 
than to laugh at others, on account of 
any natural deformity, or any misfortune 
that has happened to them." 
5* 



54 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

"When I was at Miss Smith's 
School, there was one little girl who 
was cross-eyed, and another who was 
born with a hare lip, and there was a 
great scar where it had been sowed up, 
which made her look very ugly, I 
used to cry for these poor girls, when I 
saw how some of the scholars would 
teaze them." 

" I never saw a person of a generous 
heart and a kind disposition, who 
would make sport of the miseries or 
misfortunes of others. If we do to 
others as we like to have them do to 
us, we shall always be careful, when in 
company with those who are in any 
way deformed, or who are in unhappy 
circumstances, not to speak of those 
things which we know are calculated 
to wound their feelings. We should 
not like to have people talking to us 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 55 

about defects for which we are not to 
blame, and which we cannot correct. 
It is unkind and ungenerous." 

"Mother, do you think Mrs. Bird's 
daughters mind the golden rule ? I 
have been there a great many times ; 
and their poor mother was always 
working hard ; but I never saw them 
take hold and help her. They let her 
do all the hard work ; but they spend 
their time in doing some fine work or 
visiting. If they should ever be moth- 
ers, do you think they they would like 
to be treated so ? I don't mean to let 
you work so hard for me; and the most 
that I long to be a young woman for, 
is that I may be able to help my dear 
mother." 

" I am very glad you feel so, my 
dear child ; for I never saw any thing 



56 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

that gave me more pain than the eon- 
duct of Mrs. Bird's girls." 

" Are elder brothers and sisters su- 
periors, mother ?" 

" Yes, my dear ; and the younger 
brothers and sisters ought to look up to 
them, and treat them with respect. 
And, when their parents are away, chil- 
dren should mind what their elder broth- 
ers and sisters tell them. That is the 
way they would like to be treated. 
But, the elder children should be very 
careful not to domineer over the young- 
er ones, nor treat them harshly. They 
should be kind to them ; and they 
should not exercise authority over them, 
if they can avoid it. In some families, 
the elder children are so tyrannical as to 
make the younger ones miserable. This 
is not minding the golden rule. When 
in the company of those you know to 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 57 

be your superiors, you should always 
take the lowest place ; and never put 
yourself on a level with them, unless 
at their invitation, and then do it very 
modestly. You should learn, also, to 
submit yourself to the authority under 
which you are placed. In the church, 
in the Sabbath School, and in the 
week-day School, submit to those w r ho 
are set over you ; and be very careful 
never to break any of the laws of the 
country, even in little things ; for God 
has commanded us ' to obey them that 
have the rule over us, and submit our- 
selves: 5 and if we were in the place 
of our rulers, we should expect to be 
obeyed." 

" Mother, if they tell us to do wrong, 
must we obey them ? ?? 

" No, my dear ; because that would 



58 the golden rule. 

be disobeying God ; and God is greater 
than our rulers." 

" And how shall I behave towards 
my equals, mother 

" How do you like to be treated by 
them ?" 

" I like to have them love me, and 
try to make me happy, while I am with 
them. I don't like to have them fond 
of contention, and determined to have 
their own way. It looks so selfish, and 
makes us so unhappy. I like to have 
them kind and condescending to one 
another, preferring each other's wishes 
to their own. I never am so happy, 
with any of my little friends, as with 
cousin Julia ; for she would always 
rather please me than to please herself* 
I can never get her to choose any thing, 
till she knows what my choice is, and 
then she will choose to suit me. That 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 59 

makes me love her and try in the same 
way to please her. But at aunt Mills' 
the children are so selfish that there is 
no comfort in the house. They are al- 
ways quarrelling, because every one 
wants to have his own way ; and none 
of them are willing to give up any thing 
to please the rest. I know there is 
much more comfort in giving up every 
thing we like, for the sake of others, 
than there is in enjoying it ourselves." 

" Well, how do you like to be treat- 
ed by your superiors ? 5? 

" I like to have them kind and con- 
descending, I like to have them treat 
me as if they thought me one of their 
equals, so that I may not feel my infe- 
riority. And, if they have authority 
over me, I like to have them show it 
as little as possible. 

Miss Faithful, our teacher, never 



60 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

says to us, You must do so and so. She 
always says, 6 Will you do it ?' And we 
all love her, so that we are always 
ready to do what she wishes, as soon 
as we know it. But Miss Rose used to 
be always commanding us ; and when 
she met us in the street, she would al- 
ways pass by us with such an air that 
it seemed as if she wanted us to feel 
that we were little children, not fit to 
speak to a young lady." 

" The golden rule, my dear, is the 
best rule of politeness. Before doing 
any thing in which others are concerned, 
first ask yourself, ' If I w ere in their 

PLACE, WOULD I LIKE TO HAVE THEM 

do so to me ?' Then do just as you 
think you would like to have them do, 
if they were in your place. This will 
make you so kind and amiable that you 
will be loved by all who know you. It 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 01 

will make you deny yourself to please 
your friends ; it will make you obliging 
to the neighbors, and to all your ac- 
quaintances. It will make you open- 
hearted and sincere, so that, if you 
have fault to find with any one, you will 
frankly, but kindly, tell him of it, to his 
face, but never speak of it behind his 
back. If you are buying or selling any 
thing, you will deal so fairly that you 
would be satisfied with the other side of 
the bargain. If you are in the market 
or in the shops, you will not rudely 
handle the things exposed for sale, and 
you will not go round from one stall to 
another, tasting of the fruits, so as to 
gratify your appetite without expense. 
Many people do this ; but they would 
not like to be treated so. If every one 
that stops to look at the countryman's 
fruit, should take the liberty of eating 
6 



62 THE GOLDEN RULE. 

a little, how much would he have left ? 
If you follow this rule, you will be ten- 
der of the feelings of others, because you 
do not like to have your own feelings 
wounded. You will prefer the feelings 
of others to your own ; and where you 
can do so, and not do wrong, you will 
yield to others, and not be tenacious 
of having your own way. You will be 
slow to take offence. You will not be 
suspicious that others do not like you. 
If they seem to treat you ill, you will 
look at their actions in the most favora- 
ble light ; and not be offended with 
them, till you know they intended to 
injure you. To sum it all up in one 
word, you will have CHARITY, which 
4 suffereth long and is kind ; charity 
envieth not ; charity vaunteth not 
itself, is not puffed up, doth not be- 
have itself unseemly, ^eeketh not her 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 53 

own, is not easily provoked, thinketh 
no evil ; rejoice th not in inquity, but re- 
joice th in the truth ; beareth all things, 
believeth all things, hopeth all things, 
endureth all things- Charity never 
faileth.' — 1 Cor. xiii, 4 — 8. 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 



To do to others as I would 
That they should do to me, 

Will make me honest, kind and good, 
As children ought to be. 

I know I should not steal or use 
The smallest thing I see ; 

Or what I should not like to lose, 
If it belonged to me. 

And this plain rule forbids me quite, 
To strike an angry blow ; 

Because I should not think it right 
If others served me so. 

But any kindness others need, 

I '11 do it cheerfully ; 
As I am very glad indeed, 

When they are kind to me. 

6* 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 



Whether I am at home or school, 

Or walking out abroad, 
I never would forget this rule ; 

'Tis Jesus Christ's own word- 



THE BIBLE, 



This is a precious book indeed ! 
Happy the child that loves to read ! 
'Tis God's own word, which he has giv' 
To show our souls the way to heav'n. 

It tells us how the world was made, 
And how good men the Lord obey'd. 
There his commands are written too, 
To teach us what we ought to do. 

It bids us from all sin to fly, 
Because our souls can never die ; 
It points to heav'n, where angels dwell, 
And warns us to escape from hell. 

But what is more than all beside, 
The Bible tells us Jesus died ! 



68 



THE GOLDEN RULE. 



This is its best, its chief intent, 
To lead poor sinners to repent. 

Be thankful, children, that you may 
Read this good Bible every day ; 
'Tis God's own word, which he has giv'n 
To show your souls the way to heav'n. 




m 



r 



